Engine



R. A. BLUME AND P. F. C. WILCKE. ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 17, 1919- 1,341,255. dfi y 25,1920.

3 nu wntow UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ROBERT A. BLUME AND PAUL F. C. WILCKE 0F SEATTLE, WASHINGTON; SAI D WILGKE ASSIGNOR OF ONE-SIXTH 'IO SAID ROBERT A. BLUME.

ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 25, 1920.

Application filed February 17, 1919. Serial No. 277,674.

f0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that We, ROBERT A. BLUME and PAUL F. C. WILcKE, citizens of the United States, residing at Seattle, in the count of King and State of Washington, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Engines, of which the following is a specification.

Our invention relates to improvements 111 internal combustion engines of the two cycle type and more particularly to improvements in means for injecting a charge of explosive gas into the cylinders of such engines and the object of our invention is to provlde mechanism of simple construction that IS reliable and positive in its'aotion and that o crates automatically to inject a spray of hlghly explosive fuel into the cyl1nder of the engine just prior to the t1me at which the maximum compression within the cylinder occurs.

A further and more specific ob ect is to provide plunger mechanism that is directly connected with the piston of the engine for effecting the injection of the spray of highly explosive fuel into the cylinder of the eng We accomplish these objects by devices illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein Figure l is a view partly in vertical mid section and partly in elevation of an engine constructed in accordance with our 1nvention the piston and injector mechanism being shown in the position it would occupy at the end of the compression stroke;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the p 1ston and injector mechanism in the relative positions they would occupy when the exhaust takes place;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary 86017101131 view showing the fuel inlet piston valve in the position it occupies during the inlet of fuel to a fuel chamber; and I Fig. 4 is a fragmentary sectional view showing the fuel inlet mechanism in the position it occupies at the instant the fuel is admitted or sprayed into the cylinder of the engine.

Referring to the drawings, throughout which like reference'numerals indicate like parts, 5 designates the walls of an engine cylinder that is provided around its upper ortion with a suitable water jacket 6 and is murther provided in its upper end with a spark plug 7 of the form ordinarily used for ignition purposes.

The lower portion of the cylinder 5 is provided with a flange 8 that is adapted to rest upon and be secured to a crank case 9, a fragment only of which is shown. The cylinder 5 is provided on one side with an air inlet port 10 that communicates by means of a passageway 11 with the interior of the crank case and on the opposite side with an exhaust port 12, the opening and closing of both the inlet and exhaust ports being accomplished directly by a reciprocating piston 13 and the exhaust port 12 being so positioned that it will be uncovered slightly in advance of the air inlet port 10 and will remain open for a brief period of time after the air inlet port 10 is closed.

The piston 13 may be connected by a connecting rod 14: with crank mechanism of the usual form, not shown, and the crank case 9 may serve in the usual manner as a reservoir or compressed air that is used for scavenging the cylinder when the piston is in the position shown in Fig. 2; and furnishes the necessary air for the explosive charge.

The cylinder 5 is provided at the top end with an axially arranged socket 15 that is internally threaded for the reception of an externallythreaded tube or cylinder 16 of small diameter, the tube 16 being provided with an annular flange 17 that is adapted to be screwed tightly down 011 to a packing member 18 that is interposed between such flange and the top of the cylinder.

The tube 16 is provided at a distance above the top of the cylinder 5 with a fuel inlet pipe 20 that is connected with a carbureter, not shown, and at a point below the fuel inlet pipe 20 with a groove or passageway 21 formed in the wall of the tube and adapted to serve as a fuel conductor as hereinafter described.

22 is a shank or plunger that is secured to the top of the piston 13 and is adapted to reciprocate within the tube 16, the plunger 22 having piston rings 23 near its upper end and being providedwith a fuel passageway 24 having an opening in the peripheral wall of the plunger just below the piston rings 23 that is adapted to register with the lower outlet of the passageway 21 when the plunger 22 is in the position shown in Fig. 4. The passageway 24 extends downwardly through the plunger 22 to a point near the top of the piston 13 where it intersects a plurality of. small 'radial' passageways 25 through which fuel may be emitted into the cylinder 5.

Disposed within the tube 16 above the plunger 22 is a small cylindrical piston or valve member 26 that is provided near its bottom end with a gas passageway 26 and with piston rings 27 and is slotted as at 28 so that a pin 29 may be passed therethrough, the opposite ends of the pin 29 passing outwardly through slots 30 in the walls of the tube 22.

Resting upon the pin 29 is a collar 31 that serves as a bearing plate for the lower end of a relatively strong compression spring 32 the upper end of: which spring being sup ported by a rigid sleeve 33 that is screwed on to the top end of the tube 22 so that the spring 32 exerts a downward pressure on the pin 29 at all times.

34': is a pin that extends diametrically through the piston valve 26 above the pin .29 and preferably at right angles thereto. The two ends of the pin 3a project outwardly through slots 35 and rest upon a washer 36 that is supported by a relatively light compression spring 37 that is interposed between such washer 36 and the collar 31.

The piston 13 is provided with piston rings 40 of the usual form and has a curved deflector 41 on its top side that directs the air from the air inlet port 10 upwardly so that it will sweep through the upper part of the engine cylinder and thoroughly scavenge the same.

The cycle of operation of the engine is as follows: Let it be assumed that the piston 13 is at the uppermost point of its travel and that the space above the piston is filled with compressed gas which has just been ignited by a spark from the spark plug 7, then as the piston moves downwardly on the power stroke the spring 32 will move the piston valve 26 down into the position shown in Fig. 2 where it will remain until the suction caused by the downwardly moving plunger 22 is strong enough to overcome the compression of the spring 37 and draw the piston valve 26 downwardly until the passageway 26 registers with the gas inlet port formed by the pipe 20 and permits gas to be drawn into the space between the piston valve 26 and the top of the plunger 22.

As the piston 13 nears the lowermost point of its stroke the gas enters the tube 16 through the passageway 26 and relieves the partial vacuum between the piston valve 26 and the plunger 22 and the spring 37 moves the piston valve 26 back into the position shown in Fig. 2 thus closing the gas inlet port formed by the pipe 20 and leaving that portion of the tube between the piston valve 26 and plunger 22 filled with gas.

l/Vhen the piston 13 is in its lowermost position as shown in Fig. 2 the exhaust is permitted through the port 12 while scavenging air and air for the next explosive mixture is admitted through the air inlet port 12.

As soon as the piston 13 starts to move upwardly it will close the exhaust port 12 and air inlet port 10 and will begin to compress air in the upper end of the cylinder i At the same time the plunger 22 will begin to compress gas in the tube 16 which gas will act as a cushion between the plunger 22 and piston valve 26 and will lift the piston valve against the pressure of the spring 32 until the passageway 21; in the plunger 22 registers with the groove 21 in the wall oi the tube 16, as shown in Fig. 11-, whereupon the spring 32 will be strong enough to force the gas through the passageways 21 and 21: and spray it from the radial passageways 2:") into the already compressed air in the upper end of the cylinder thereby forming an explosive mixture ust prior to the admission of a spark for firing the same.

As soon as the gas from between the piston valve 26 and plunger 22 is forced into the cylinder the end of the piston valve 26 will be pressed against the end of the plunger 22 and will move downwardly therewith into the position shown in Fig. 2 thus closing all connmmication between the passageway 24 and the interior of; the tube 16 and preventing all danger of back firing when the explosion occurs in the cylinder.

It is obvious that changes in the precise form of construction and arrangement of the various parts of our invention may be resorted to within the scope of the following claims.

What we claim is:

1. An engine comprising a cylinder having a reciprocablc piston therein, a tube extending upwardly from said cylinder in axial alinement therewith and communicating with said cylinder said tube having a gas passageway formed in the walls thereof, a plunger secured to said piston and adapted to reciprocate within said tube said plunger being provided with a gas passageway having an opening in the peripheral wall thereof adjacent the upper end and adapted to register with the passageway in the wall of said tube and other openings in the peripheral wall thereof adjacent the lower end, a gas inlet conduit opening into said tube, and a piston valve movable within said tube said piston valve having a passageway adapted to register with said gas inlet conduit.

2. An engine comprising a cylinder having a reciprocable piston therein, a tube extending upwardly from said cylinder in axial alinement therewith and communicating with said cylinder, said tube being slotted and having a gas passageway formed in the walls thereof, a plunger secured to said piston and adapted to reciprocate within said tube said plunger being provided with a gas passageway havin a terminal opening in the peripheral Wa 1 thereof adjacent the u per end that is adapted to re ister with t e passageway in the wall of sai tube and other terminal openings in the periph eral wall thereof adjacent the lower end of said plunger, a gas inlet conduit opening into said tube, a piston valve movable within said tube said piston valve having a passageway adapted to register with said gas inlet conduit and being provided with a transverse slot, pins extending crosswise through said piston valve and through slots in said tube to limit the movement of said valve, and spring mechanism connected with said piston valve and acting in conjunction with the suction produced by said plunger to control the movement of said piston valve.

3. The combination with an engine cylinder having a reciprocable piston therein, of a tube extending upwardly from said cylinder and communicating with the upper end thereof, said tube being slotted and having a gas passageway formed in the walls thereof, a plunger secured to said piston and adapted to reciprocate within said tube said plunger being provided with a gas passagewa havin an openin in the peripheral wa 10f sai plunger ad acent the upper end that is adapted to register with the passageway in the Wall of said tube and other openings in the peripheral wall of said plunger adjacent the lower end that communicate with said cylinder, a gas inlet conduit opening into said tube, a piston valve movable within said tube said piston valve having a passageway adapted to register with said gas in et conduit and being provided with a transverse slot, a pin extending through said slot in said piston valve, the ends of said pin projecting outwardly through slots in the walls of said tube, a collar on the exterior of said tube and supported on the ends of said pin, a rigid flange on the top end of said tube, a relatively strong com pression spring interposed between said flange and said collar, another pin extending crosswise through said piston valve above said first named pin and arranged to have its two ends project outwardly through slots in said tube, a washer disposed below said last named pin and a relatively weak compression spring interposed between said washer and said collar, said two springs acting in, conjunction with the suction produced by said plunger to control the movement of said piston valve.

In witness whereof we hereunto subscribe our names this 10th day of February, A. D.

ROBERT A. BLUME. PAUL F. C. WILCKE. 

